http://www.esourcingforum.com/archives/2007/04/25/the-7cs-cheat-sheet/ The source of information and best practices in strategic sourcing. Tue, 02 Dec 2008 15:50:12 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.6.2 http://www.esourcingforum.com/archives/2007/04/25/the-7cs-cheat-sheet/#comment-7523 David Bush - Iasta Thu, 26 Apr 2007 15:29:56 +0000 http://www.esourcingforum.com/?p=421#comment-7523 Great points, Mark. As usual, GE is at the root of many of business best practices and had already developed the human methods that are now deployed through technology today. Great points, Mark. As usual, GE is at the root of many of business best practices and had already developed the human methods that are now deployed through technology today.

]]> http://www.esourcingforum.com/archives/2007/04/25/the-7cs-cheat-sheet/#comment-7515 Mark Usher Thu, 26 Apr 2007 14:31:10 +0000 http://www.esourcingforum.com/?p=421#comment-7515 You know it's funny. The 7C's list is just another example of something we should never forget, that is that regardless of technology factors the fundamentals of procurement never change. Back in the "old days" when I was a procurement practitioner at GE we learnt that basically there were 3 ways to obtain pricing for a purchase - (1) published price lists, (2) competitive bidding or (3) negotiation. And of course we were also taught that in some cases you would use a combination of (2) and (3). With regard to when to use competitive bidding we were taught that four of the main factors to consider were (1) sufficient dollar value of the purchase, (2) unambiguous specifications, (3) an adequate number of competing sellers, and (4) willingness of the supply base to take part/enter into a contract. All of these four criteria are in the 7C's above. My point is that as organizations look to develop top notch procurement talent they should ensure that sight is never lost of the fundamental procurement principles that underpin the technology. Make sure that people aren't just taught when to use reverse auctions but when to recognize a competitive bidding situation when they see one. As my old boss at GE would say "without the fundamentals we're at the mercy of bits, bytes and user guides". You know it’s funny. The 7C’s list is just another example of something we should never forget, that is that regardless of technology factors the fundamentals of procurement never change. Back in the “old days” when I was a procurement practitioner at GE we learnt that basically there were 3 ways to obtain pricing for a purchase - (1) published price lists, (2) competitive bidding or (3) negotiation. And of course we were also taught that in some cases you would use a combination of (2) and (3). With regard to when to use competitive bidding we were taught that four of the main factors to consider were (1) sufficient dollar value of the purchase, (2) unambiguous specifications, (3) an adequate number of competing sellers, and (4) willingness of the supply base to take part/enter into a contract. All of these four criteria are in the 7C’s above. My point is that as organizations look to develop top notch procurement talent they should ensure that sight is never lost of the fundamental procurement principles that underpin the technology. Make sure that people aren’t just taught when to use reverse auctions but when to recognize a competitive bidding situation when they see one. As my old boss at GE would say “without the fundamentals we’re at the mercy of bits, bytes and user guides”.

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